Umbilicals, such as steel tube umbilicals, are commonly used in oil and gas underwater field developments. Umbilical can consist of many tubes, cables, fibers, and fillers, bundled together. In general, an umbilical is specifically designed for each application, and different field applications tend to have different umbilical cross sections. Therefore, different umbilicals have different buckling behaviors and capacities. As they are being used in deeper and deeper water depth, umbilicals are subject to higher and higher compression loads, which can cause the umbilicals to buckle. Umbilical buckling has a number of undesirable effects, such as reduction in flow rate, crack, leak, loss of functionality, or failure of the umbilical tubes. Apparatus and methods can be designed to test the umbilical buckling behavior and capacity so that suitable umbilicals can be designed or selected for various applications by reducing the risks of umbilical buckling and avoiding the undesirable consequences of umbilical buckling.